Tesserae, Tesserae, Tesserae: Beautiful – Yet Deadly

I tell my students over and over. NEVER put your hand in a container of tesserae without looking!!! Even then, it is better to pour it out so they separate. I cannot stress this enough!!! Tesserae can be sharp, especially glass shards. They are so beautiful, yet so deadly… Even if you start with square tiles, it is rare not to find broken pieces. LOOK BEFORE YOU TOUCH!

CONTAINERS:

It is highly important that you keep all of your tesserae away from children, pets, etc… In the beginning, I had so few pieces… I just threw them in an old box. Then, just like rabbits, they started multiplying. Too much time was spent on finding rather than using. Into the baggies they went! However, the bags ripped.

So, precious money was spent on jars. I could only afford the cheap jars, but they gave me such a “java” high to see all the different colors and textures! That is, until the jars BROKE! Yes, I said it…

Many months went by until I had enough money to purchase “new and improved” containers. The tesserae were moved into small plastic drawers from the discount store. Well, the plastic didn’t break, but it did take away the “java” high. (couldn’t see the tesserae) About that time, I started to sell a few mosaics.

Time for new see-through containers – expensive ones from the jewelry section of the craft store. (40% off, of course…) The problem was I used more money for the containers than the tesserae. However, the “java” high was exhilarating!

Today, there is a combination of plastic drawers, jewelry containers and higher quality canning jars. The “java” high still can’t be beat, but I’m much more accepting of my containers. Just saying…